Carriage return for punching machines



. 1,643,779 Sept. 27, 1927- w w LAsKER CARRIAGE RETURN'FOR PUNCHING IACHINES Filed 001'.. 22. 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Se t. 1 1,643,779

p 27 927 w. w. LAsKER CARRIAGE RETURN FOR PUNCHING MACHINES Filed Oct. 22. 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .nw s 7 .t 3, .m M S r 1.. .t e e h S s 3 E N I H C u G R m m m m 1 s u om A P 2 L M L w. w .l w .w I W m NN. F I; v w 'f -i n. m l A C 7. 2 9 1 7, 2 .WM .n .N M. Kw1 M.. WNRN /NvE/VTOf? HQI/fall; IV. asie/2 Trae/ver WITNESS Patented Slept. 27, 1927.

UNITED. STATES PATENT Ai-fricl-i.-

WILLIAI LASXER, OF BROOXXLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR -TO POWERS ACCOUNTING IACHINE CORPORATION, Ol' NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION Ol' DILAWARE.-

vCARRIAGE RETURN FOR PUNCHING MACHINRB.

Application' tiled October 82, 1885. Serial lo. 84,174.

The present invention relates to punching mechanism for perforating cards ina predetermined manner, and relates more particularly to a control for the automatic return a of the carriage by which the punch set-up is made. In machines of thecharacter to which this invention relates there is a traveling carriage equipped with a single row of setting pins corresponding in number and alinement-to one row of the card to be punchedand the construction is such that the carriage moves step by step across the card in response to the manual operation of keys by which the pins are selected. .When

l5 all of the pins are set to produce the predetermined arrangement of punches to perforate the articular card, a key is operated so that, wi the card in register, means will function to cause the card to be perforated by the punch set-up, and thereafter the punch set-up must be restored, the carriage returned to its initial position, and the setup pins restored ready foria new set-up to -spectively in vertical alinement with a pluaccord with statistics or data tobe reproduced in the form of perforations upon another card.

The present invention is. concerned more particularly.,with the return control ofthe carriage'--Landfadjuncts-operated-thereby.y y

Some of the objectsof the :present invention are to provide an improved automatic carriage return mechanism for card punching or perforating machines; to provide means for automatically returning a punchin'g machine set-up carriage to anyone of a predetermined initial punch set-up positions; to provide a control means', adapted to be set universally, and 'automatically operativeto arrest thereturn ofthe carriage 4" which carries the set-upfselecting devices;

to provide means for automatically restoring` the punch setting members by the operation of the carriage return elements; to provide means to eliminate shock and prevent breakage of the carriage return draw band tape;

the carriage return means from the powerf transmitting means in case of excessive tension upon t e return means; and to provide other improvements as will hereinafter ap- In the accompanying drawingsfEig. 1 represents a side elevation ofk a punching ma` return control circuit showing a portionof the operating keyboard; and Fig'. 7 is a .detail snowing the clutch latching mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, one form-.of

carriage return mechanism embodying -the present invention is shown as applied to a card punching machine of the type in which a carriage 10 carrying a row of. vertically movable selecting pins 11 is arranged to travel across a cage or open frame 12 .containing a plurality of set-up bars 13 which `are respectively in vertical alinement with abutment pins 14 and these latter are rerality of punches 15. The set-up bars 13 are each suitably notched to form latches -16 for engagement with transversely arranged latch bars 17 which are automatically shifted, against the tension imposed by springs 18, by cam lugs 20 on the respective tion of any of the bars 13 the alined abutment pins 14 are projected against-,the tension of springs 2l into close proximity to and have theirlower ends respectively proregistration platev 23 which forms with a .lower perforated registration-plate 24a pas- :sage- 25 to receive the card. The plates 23 and-24 are part of a movable die 26 which 1s reciprocated by a suitable mechanism in stimed relation to the cycle of operations.

When a set-up has been made and a card is in the passage 25, the upward movement of the die 26 brings the card into contact with 4the lower ends of the punches 15 and those which are free 'to move are pushed upward y by the movement of the die 26, While thosebars 17, to thus lock any set-up bar 13 which has been moved to set position. Inset posi- 'fjecting .into the .perforations of an upper which are held b the set abutment pins 14' cannot move an therefore punch yholen 'in' the card at the desired locations. j

In the punching machine here shown by way of example, the selecting pins 11' are,`

respectivel arranged to be manually set by means of exible wires or other connectors 27 which have connection with the respective keys 28 of the key-board of the machine. Thus any pin 11 which has been set.

is rigidly held a ainst movement inI the carriage frame an as the latter reciprocates the set pin will abut and set the selected set-bar 13. While the operating keys 28 corres ond in number to the selecting pms 11, other keys are provided for other control purposes, such as a key 29 for causing the operation of the carriage return mechanism, a skip key 30 for line skipping, and.

for any other control.

For causing the carriage 10 to` travel across the field of set-up ars 13 to make a set-up, it is connected by .a tape 31. to a spring winding drum 32 which is tensloned to give the required travelv to the carriage, while an escapement pawl 33 and ratchet 34 operating in conjunction with a `rack 35 provides the desired step-bystep movement.

For returning the carriage 10 to a starting position, either alined with the first row of set-bars 11 or any other selected row, a carriage return block 36 is mounted upon a track 37 for sliding movement parallel to the direction of movement of the carriage, and has a hook lug 38 projecting into the path of a pin 40 fixed to the carriage 10. The block 36 is also provided with a llft cam 41, the inclined face 42 of which is arranged to engage a roller 43 journalled on an arm 44 of the carriage return lever 45, and by lifting it transmits motion to the lever 45 and through it to the link controlled arm 46 whereby the restoring roller 47 presses the cam triggers 47 to unlatch the bars 17 and restore the set bars 13 to normal position. One end of the carriagel return block 36 is connected by a tape 48, or

other suitable means, to a carriage return block tension drum 49, which being under .winding tension at all times operates to -automatically `return the block 36 as soon as it is released from a greater force. actingt0..pull the block in the opposite direction against the tension of the drum 49. The

.drum end of the tape 48 is connected to a! .strip bowed spring 48 joined to fthe drum 49and serving: as a shock absorbing device or compensator4 for any excess strain in the ta e 48. l, j

y this safety means abnormal pull upon the tape 48 is transmitted to the spring 48', and, due to its bowed. form, automatically relieves the tape tension and prevents breaking of the tape. The opposite end of the block 36 is connected by a tape 50 leading to imam and winding upon a friction driven drum 51. This drumv 51 is mounted u n abushing 52 which is fastened to a iven shaft 53, though any means for so securing the 'bushing 52 can be employed. Between the -head of the bushing 52 and an adjusting 'nut 54 upon its end are two friction washers 55 receiving between them the disc body 56 of the drum 51, and the normal friction pressure created by the nut 54 causes the motion of the shaft 53 toI be transmitted to the drum l51 to wind the tape 50. This Yfriction is suiiicient for all operating conditions of the punch carrie e movements but in case the carriage shoul stick or for any other cause an abnormal strain be thrown upon the tape `50 then the drive friction will be overcome and the drum 51 can turn relative to the shaft .53, thereby preventing breakage of parts.

For transmittingmotion to the shaft 53, bevel gears 57 and 58 are meshed and mounted to be driven by a shaft 6() which carries ra movable clutch 61 arrangedpfor clutching engagement with a .clutch disc 62 having sprocket 6 3 to .be driven bya chain 64 which receives its motion l:from the main shaft of thefzlnachina .The movable clutch 61 is provided with suitable clutch pins 67, thrust bearings 68, adjusting collars 70, and

a spring 71, the tension of which is adjusted -of acarriage return bar 81. The link 76 is arranged to be held so that the clutch 61 is normally held out of clutching position by a pin -82 xed to the link 76 and engaged by a latch 83 on an arm 84. This arm 84 is pivoted.. to the frame and is returned and held inl late-hed position by a spring 85 stretched between the arm. 84 and a fixed point.' The end of thearm 84 opposite to the latch 83 is connected to the core 86 of a solenoid 87 which is included in an open electrical circuit, the closing of which takes place by the operation of the return key 29. The carriage return bar 81 is mounted for limited sliding movement on studs 88 which pass through slots 89. formed in the bar 81, and the length of the slots 89 is such that the endwise movement of the bar 81 is sufficientto rock the reset arm 77 to release the clutch. A

For transmitting movement 'to the bar 81 and also` bringing the carriage 10 to rest roperly alined with the first row of setars 13` or any other selected row, an index. stop-90 is provided and'arranged for lim sliding movement on the bar 81 but with provision for anchoring it to the bar 81 in any selected position. As here shown the lower edge of the bar 81 is provided with a plurality of notches 91 arranged to receive one or more tooth-like projections 92 on a keeper 93 which is pivoted to the index stop 90 and held tensioned toward the notches 91 by a spring 94 stretched between a pin 95 on the keper 93 and a pin 96 on the index stop 90. lock lever 97 is connected to the keeper 93 and slides relative to the stop 90 by the provision of a slot 98 and a stud 100, the last being iixed to the stop 90 and riding in the slot 98 to thereby guide the lever 97. Thus normally the index stop 90 is locked to the bar 81 by 'the spring 94 holding the rejections 92 seated in the notches 91, but gy pressing the lever 97 down, the keeper 93 is released from interlocked relation and may be moved longitudinally relative to the bar 91 to assume any new selected osition. f

or locating the index stop 90 so that the carriage 10 takesa position in register with any selected rowof set-up bars 13, the bar 81 is numbered at intervals throughout its length corresponding to the number of rows or columns of set-up bars 13 in the field and proper setting of the index stop 90 is obtained by providing a sight opening 101 so located as t register with the numbers on the bar 81 and bring one number at a time opposite 'the opening 101. When the index stop 90 is set so that the carriage 10 takes an initial position in alinement with the first column of set-up bars 13, which is the osition shown in Fig. 1, the index stop 90 a uts a laterally rejecting pin 102 iixed to the bar 81, and hy which movement is transmitted from the stop 90 to the bar 81 to cause operation of the reset arm 77. In other positions, the index stop 90, being locked to the bar 81, serves to give the desired end movement to actuate the reset arm 77 In the operation of the punch, the index stop 90 is moved on the bar 81 so that the stop position is registered with the column of set-up bars 13 which has been selected as the starting point or initial setting of the carriage 10, and this setting of the stop is correctly made when the sight opening 101 shows the number corresponding to the selectedcolumn. Where theentire field of the card is to be traversed by the carriage 10, the index stop 90 will be set abutting the pin 102 and the opening 101 Will show numeral 1. The operation of the keys 28 causes the carriage 10 to move row by row across the set-up bars 13 until the complete set-up has been made, and then the carriage return key 29 is depressed to close the circuit including the solenoid 87. The energization of the solenoid 87 shifts the core 86 to release the latch link 76 and thereby free the movable clutch 61 to the action of the spring 71, so that motion is transmitted to the winding drum 51 through the friction clampin washers 55. The tape 50 windmg on the rum 51 feeds the block 36 towards the carriage 10 and its lift cam 41 ,meets the roller 43 and raises it to the position necessary to throw the restoring roller 47 into operative relation with respect to the latches and at the same time rocking the lever 45 to restore the carriage set-up. When the parts have been brought to such position, the return lug 38 on `the block 36 picks up the pin 40 and causes the carriagevlO to return under the action of the block 36. The return movement of the carriage 10 continues until the collar 103 contacts with the index stop 90 which then follows the movement of the carriage and causes the bar 81 to also move through its limited travel to shift the reset lever V77. The movement of the reset lever 77 releases the clutch 61 and restores the latch link 76 to locking position. When this occurs the Winding drum 51 is released to the 'tension of 'the block return tape 48 and the block 36 thereupon returns to its former position ready for its next carriage return movement.

By the provision of the friction connection between the winding drum and its driving mechanism any failure of the carriage- 10 to move on its return will be taken up automatically,vthus saving breakage of the tape or other parts and relieving the machine of the abnormal strain. Furthermore, the looped spring 48 attached to the tape l48 for returning the block 36 acts to relieve strain and shock upon the tape and its winding drum.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that a complete unitary carriage return mechanism has been provided wherein the initial position of the carriage can be changed at will to correspond to any one of many punching operations. Where, for example, the card is to be punched only in certain of the last fields of a card, starting, say, with column twenty of the card, the index stop 90 is released from the bar 81 and moved until the numeral 20 on the indicating strip shows at the sight opening 101. The locking lever 97 is then released to lock the stop 90 in that position and in conse quence the carriage 10 returns only to that position of the stop and contacting therewith automatically releases the carriage from the return mechanism. The result of this construction is a iexibility of control and an increase in the speed of punching cards which only require data perforations in less than the whole number of columns.

While only a single form is shown in which this invention may be embodied, it is t o be understood that the invention is not limited to any specific construction, but

might be a' plied to various forms without departing rom the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

AHaving thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a punching machine, .the combination of a punch set-up carriagearranged to travel across the machine to make a punch set-up, means orautomatically returning said carriage, and means for varying the starting position of said carriage whereby the punch set-up can begin to operate at any selected column of a field of punches.\

2. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch set-up carriage arranged to travel. across the machine to make a punch set-up, means for automatically returning said carriage, and adjustable stop means in the return path of said carriage for stopping said carriage in a predetermined position.

3. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch .set-up carriage arranged to travel across .the machine to make a punch set-up, means for automatically returning said carriage, adjustable stop means in the return path of said carriage for stopping said carriage in a predetermined position, and means for indicating the position of said stop means with respect to a column of punches.

4. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch set-u carriagearranged to travel across the mac ine to make a punch set-up, means for automatically returning said carriage to a starting position, stop means arranged to be fixed in any one of a plurality of positions vto thereby var said starting position, and means control ed by said stop means for bringing said carriage to rest in the selected starting position.

5. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch set-up carriage arranged to travel across the machine to make a punch set-up, means for automatically returning said carriage to a starting position, stop means arranged to be fixed in any one of a plurality of positions to thereby vary said starting position, and means controlled by said stop means for releasing said carriage from said returning means, whereby said carriage stops in the selected starting position. y

6. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch set-up carriage arranged to travel across the machine to make a punch set-up, means for automatically returning saidcarriage to a starting position, means including a movable bar for releasing said carriage from said return means, and a stop adjustably mounted on said bar in the return path of a carriage part for operating said releasing means when said carriage reaches a predetermined startin position.

7. In a punching machine, t e combination of a punch set-up carriage arranged to Lemme travel across the machine to make av punch set-up, means for automaticall returning said carriage to a startin position, means including a movable bar gor releasing said carriage fromsaid return means, Aa stop adjustablyfmounted on said bar in the return path of a carriage part for operating said releasing means when said carriage reaches a predetermined starting position, indicating characters on said bar corresponding to punch columns, and means on said stop to designate the position of said stop with respect to each indicating character'.V

8. In a punching machine, the combination of a punch set-up carriage arranged to ytravel across the machine to make a punch set-up, means` for automatically returning said carriage to a starting position, means including a. movable bar 4for releasing said carriage from said return means, a stop adjustably mounted on said bar in the return path of a carriage part for operating said releasing means and provided with a sight opening, and indicating characters on said bar in alinement with said sight opening and corresponding to punch columns.

9. In a punching machine, a carriage arranged to travel across the machine to make a punch set-up, power driven means for returning said carriage to a starting position, and a friction connection between said carriage and said driven means whereby said carriage is automatically released from said driven means under abnormal conditions.

10. In a punching machine, a carriage arranged to travel across the machine to make a punch set-up, power driven means for returning said carriage to a starting position, a tape connecting said carriage to said driven means, and means for automatically releasing said carriage from said driven means when an abnormal tension is applied to said tape.

11. In a punching machine, a carriage arranged to travel across the machine to make a punch Set-up, power driven means for returning said carriage to a starting position, a tape connecting said carriage to said driven means, a winding drum for said tape, and friction means for connecting said drum to said driven means whereby said carriage is automatically released from said driven means when an abnormal tension is applied to said tape.

12. In a punching machine, a carriage arranged to travel across the machine, means for returning said carriage to its startin 0' position,.a device normally maintaining saidreturning means inoperative, means including a solenoid for releasing said device to cause said returning means to function, and adjustable stop means for said carriage for resetting said device to stop said returning means whereby the starting position of said carriage can be varied at will.

13. In a punching machine, a carriage, a carriage-return element, means lncluding a 'winding drum and a tape for causing Said winding drum and a tape for causing said 10 carriage-return element to travel transverse- 1y of the machine 1n one direction, and a Winding drum.

Signed at Philadelphia,

loop spring interposed between said tape and county of Phila- 15 delphia, State of Pennsylvania, this 15th day of October, 1925.

WILLIAM W. LASKER. 

